Grenfell Report Calls For Radical Changes To Building Regulations

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In the UK, a review into the Grenfell Tower fire says radical changes are needed to fix what's been called the "broken" system of building regulations.

Judith Hackitt's report says indifference and ignorance has led to a "race to the bottom", with costs put ahead of safety.

It calls for fundamental reform to improve safety and rebuild trust among those living in high-rise buildings.

The report comes in the wake of the deadly fire at the west London tower block in last June, which killed 71 people.

File photo

At the heart of the new system will be a requirement for the construction industry to take responsibility for delivering safe buildings, "rather than looking to others to tell them what is or is not acceptable".

But the report has stopped short of calling for an outright ban on the flammable cladding - blamed by many for the spread of the fire - because it would "not address the root causes" of the problems in building regulations.

She also did not recommend a ban on so-called "desktop studies", assessments that can be used to approve cladding without physical fire safety tests taking place.

"The proposed change does not ban assessments in lieu of tests, as there are some products and systems for which a full-scale physical test is not possible, but it will significantly reduce their use and ensure that those which are carried out are conducted rigorously and properly recorded for further scrutiny," the report said.

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